Dinner guests 'wade for it' at Bog to Table cranberry dinner

Oct 6, 2017

Cranberries are a versatile fruit in many dishes and make for some great selfies, attendees of the Bog to Table Dinner discovered Thursday night.

The highlight of the dinner, hosted by the A.D. Makepeace Company and Ocean Spray Cranberries, was the opportunity for guests to wriggle into waders and enjoy cocktails in the bog.

This was the second Bog to Table Dinner hosted in Wareham and the event has grown since last year, said Linda Burke, A.D. Makepeace Company’s vice president for marketing and communications.

“People were always asking if they could go in the bog,” Burke said. “They kept using the phrase ‘bucket list’...people use the photos for their Christmas cards or their Facebook profile pictures.”

While guests got their pictures taken among the floating cranberries, the caterers of the dinner, Off the Vine, were making 200 plates of foods that incorporated cranberries.

“We used fresh, whole cranberries in simple syrup as a garnish for our pumpkin ravioli,” explained Darren Maggio, executive chef of Off the Vine.

Dried cranberries were used on a bed of fresh, local greens grown in a hydroponic trailer on the A.D. Makepeace Company grounds. The main dish was short ribs braised in cranberries and port. Of course, dessert also featured the berries, with a fig and cranberry compote.

“Cranberries are very nutritious and sweet,” said Maggio, who likes using them in all types of dishes during this time of year. He said they can be substituted for other types of dried fruit in almost any recipe.